"It hit me on the first day. I was like, 'What kind of dancing is this?'" Vanilla Ice told ET. "This is not what I'm used to."

While he might be a newbie to the waltz and the samba, Vanilla Ice's pro partner, Witney Carson, raved about his progress.

"He's been so awesome," Carson gushed. "When he does his moves and he gets into it, it's so fun and I'm having such a great time. We have the cha cha, so it's taking a lot of work but we're getting there."

Carson admitted that she and her family were "stoked" when they learned she was paired with the "Ice Ice Baby" rapper, and Vanilla Ice teased that fans might see him dance to his perennial hit.

While Vanilla Ice avoids stepping on toes literally, Ryan Lochte is watching his step in the metaphorical sense, as he is hoping for a little image rehab on the show in the wake of his scandal in Rio.

"There's so many other important things going on in the world," the U.S. Olympic swimmer said. "Hopefully this helps give people a different perspective of me, and just move on."

One longtime member of the DWTS family, Mark Ballas, was absent from the festivities on Wednesday as he is heading to Broadway to star in Jersey Boys. Ballas' best friend, Derek Hough, chatted with ET about the casting news at the 101 Dance Center in Los Angeles last week.

"It's like a dream come true for him for sure, and I honestly cried when I found out," Hough exclusively told ET. "I teared up because I just know how much this means to him and he is so excited and it's awesome."